One Week
by George Nordgren's Stalker
Summary: [Arthur] A romance story. Buster has a secret admirer! But who is it? OMG! Read the story!
1. Monday: The Note

This is my first attempt at writing Arthur fiction. So go easy please! This story will have slash later on, if you don't like that kind of stuff you should probably stop reading now. The story is set in 6th grade, so they're all about 12. Comments and constructive criticism are nice to get! Please review! Thanks, and enjoy.  
  
***  
  
One Week by luciferchan aka George Nordgren's Stalker  
  
*Monday*  
  
It was the second week of sixth grade. Buster Baxter walked down the hallway of Lakewood Elementary to his locker, which was conveniently located next to his best friend's. "Hey Arthur!" he called. "You finish that report that Mrs. Griffon assigned?"  
  
Arthur Read looked at his friend. "Yeah... It took like three hours, though. You'd think she's related to Ratburn!"  
  
Buster laughed as he opened his locker. "Maybe she's a long lost cousin or something-- Hey!" A folded up piece of paper fell at his feet. "What's that?" Arthur bent to pick it up.  
  
"Looks like some kind of note," he said. "It doesn't say who it's from though." He handed it to Buster.  
  
Buster quickly unfolded the note and read it. He looked at Arthur strangely.  
  
"What? What is it?" Arthur asked.  
  
"I... I think it's a love note!"  
  
"What?" exclaimed Arthur. "Let me see it." He took the note from Buster and read it. "It says:  
  
'A raven is black,  
  
And white's for a dove,  
  
When I think of you,  
  
I think I'm in love.' Wow. You've got a secret admirer!" Arthur gave the poem back to Buster.  
  
"Who could it be from? I don't remember anyone being in love with me..."  
  
"We'll talk about it at lunch, the bell's gonna ring soon!" The two grabbed their books and ran to class.  
  
*****  
  
Later, during lunch, Buster and Arthur told their friends about the note.  
  
"Can we see it?" asked Muffy. Buster took the note out of his pocket.  
  
"You guys have to promise not to tell anyone else about this." he said.  
  
"We promise! Now give it!" said Francine, snatching the paper out of Buster's hand. Muffy and Francine quickly read the note.  
  
"How romantic!" Muffy sighed, "But who would write Buster a love note?" She passed it to Brain.  
  
"That's what I was wondering," said Buster. "You two wouldn't happen to know if anyone has a crush on me... Would you?"  
  
Muffy looked at Francine, who shook her head and shrugged. "I haven't heard anything," Francine replied.  
  
"You'd better be careful, Buster," Arthur said. "It might be a prank..."  
  
"Or," Buster started, "it was put there by aliens from a far-off galaxy!"  
  
Everyone stared at Buster.  
  
"Why in the world would aliens put a love poem in your locker?" asked Brain incredulously.  
  
"Maybe it's a trick to get me alone and to capture me so they can take me to their planet and put me in some kinda intergalactic zoo!" Buster answered. Francine groaned.  
  
"Will you just drop the whole dumb alien thing?"  
  
"Hey! Aliens aren't dumb! They're a lot smarter than you!" Buster said angrily.  
  
"No they aren't!"  
  
"Can you build a spaceship and travel thousands of light years? I don't think so!"  
  
Brain cleared his throat. "I believe I have the answer. Judging from the fact that the note is written in verse, the author must be someone who has a love of poetry. There's only one person we know who values poetry over everything else."  
  
"Fern?" they exclaimed.  
  
"Precisely." said Brain, smiling. Everyone looked at Fern, who was sitting a few tables away reading a poetry book.  
  
"I never would have imagined her and Buster..." said Muffy.  
  
"Perhaps she's attracted to his sense of humor," Brain guessed. "You should talk to her about it after school, Buster."  
  
"Maybe." he replied. "What if it wasn't her though?"  
  
"Who else would it be?" asked Francine. "No one else is as obsessed with poetry as she is!"  
  
Buster looked doubtful. He shrugged. "Oh well. I guess I'll ask her later. You gonna finish that custard tart, Brain?"  
  
"I can't believe you!" Muffy shouted, exasperated. "You have a potential girlfriend and all you can think about is dessert?"  
  
Buster looked up with his mouth full. "Um. Yeah, what's wrong with that?" Muffy sighed harshly.  
  
"Boys."  
  
*****  
  
After school, Buster waited by the front doors for Fern. When she came out of the building, he approached her.  
  
"Hi Fern!" He said, grinning. Fern looked at him.  
  
"Um. Hi Buster. What's up?" she asked.  
  
"Oh nooothing. How are you?" he asked with a stupid grin on his face. Fern stared at him.  
  
"Are you okay?"  
  
"Oh I'm fiiine. How are you?"  
  
"You just asked me that."  
  
Buster paused. "Oh yeah. Anyway, mind if I walk you home?" He winked at her. Fern wondered what was going on.  
  
"Um. Okay." They walked towards her house. "Buster?"  
  
He looked at her. "Yeah?"  
  
"Why are you walking me home?"  
  
Buster blushed. "I thought maybe you had something to tell me. Don't you?" he asked hopefully.  
  
Fern raised her eyebrows. "What. Oh yeah! I do!"  
  
Buster asked excitedly, "What? What is it?"  
  
"There's going to be another poetry reading at the library on Saturday! I wanted to know if you could come."  
  
"Oh," Buster said, disappointed. "That's it?"  
  
Fern frowned. "I thought you liked poetry!"  
  
"Oh, I do.. I do. I just thought you were going to say something else."  
  
"Like what?"  
  
"Oh nothing. Look here's your house gotta go see ya tomorrow!" Buster ran off, leaving a very confused Fern behind.  
  
"What was that about.?"  
  
*****  
  
"Did you talk to Fern today?" Arthur asked. After he had arrived at home, he had called Buster.  
  
"Yeah, I did." Buster said, sprawled on a chair. "She didn't say anything too important, just told me that there's a poetry reading at the library on Saturday."  
  
"Maybe she's playing hard to get."  
  
Buster thought for a second. "What does that even mean?"  
  
"It means she's not going to tell you she likes you, your going to have to trick her into saying it."  
  
"...That still doesn't make sense."  
  
"I know. I gotta go, Buster. I'll see you at school!"  
  
"Bye..." Buster hung up the phone and sighed. "Why do girls have to be so confusing?" He thought about what Arthur said. Hard to get. It didn't make a lot of sense to him, but he had to find out if she had a crush on him. He got out a pad and pencil and started planning what he'd do tomorrow at school. "I've got it! I'll ask 'Do you don't not dislike not Buster?' That should be tricky enough!" He stopped. "Nah. That's kind of stupid. I'll have to come with something really clever." Suddenly, an idea struck him. He began to write. "That's it! Buster Baxter, you're a genius. Fern won't know what hit her!"   
  
***  
  
It'll get more interesting later, I promise! Please review. 


	2. Tuesday: The Confession

W00t. Chapter two! Thanks a bum ton for all the positive reviews! Yeah. Oh, and a biiiig thank you to Tainted Psyche for proofreading these. Wee! Replies to reviews are at the end. -----  
  
One Week by luciferchan a.k.a. George Nordgren's Stalker *****  
  
*Tuesday*  
  
Mrs. Griffon was the most feared school teacher in Lakewood Elementary. Most people were afraid to even walk by her classroom, for fear of having to lay eyes on her. Her classroom(which she rarely left) was large, cold, and blank. The desks in the class all faced forward in rows, without touching each other. Mrs. Griffon's desk lay at the front of the class, next to the chalkboard. No one had ever seen her sit in her chair, though. She spent most of her time looming over the students in her class, hissing menacingly. She was a tall, bony rabbit-woman, of an indeterminable age. Some said she existed before the school was built, and they erected it around her. No student would wish her wrath on their worst enemy. Unfortunately for Arthur, Buster, Fern, Francine, Muffy, Jenna, Binky, and George, this was their sixth grade teacher. The Brain and Sue Ellen were lucky enough to be in different classes(Sue Ellen had Ms. Cheng, and The Brain was in the Advanced Class with Mr. Sunday). Mrs. Griffon glared at each child as they filed into the classroom and took their seats. "Hello class," she hissed venomously, "I hope each of you has your homework for history. You all know the consequences if you don't." The class shuddered. "Please pass your papers to the front now." As she collected the papers from the front she began her lesson for the day. "As you all know, we've been studying horribly fatal diseases. Today we will learn about the bubonic plague. You all will have an oral report due first thing tomorrow morning, so be quiet and listen." Some of the class started to groan, but stopped when Mrs. Griffon cast her evil eye on them. "The bubonic plague was one of the worst diseases..." She began to drone.   
  
Francine leaned forward and poked Buster in the back. "How are you and your girlfriend?" she asked.  
  
Buster turned. "She's not my girlfriend... Yet. I have a secret plan that can't fail! It'll all happen after school today!"  
  
"Mister Baxter..." an evil voice hissed. Buster gulped and turned to face the teacher. "I believe we have a rule about talking in class, don't we?" Buster nodded weakly. "Then I believe you would like to spend your lunch period here in class practicing keeping your mouth closed. As I was saying, after your corpse was found they would..."  
  
*****  
  
"Where's Buster?" asked Brain as they all sat down to lunch.  
  
"He got in trouble for talking in class, so he has to stay in with... Mrs. Griffon." Arthur replied.  
  
"Catherine told me all about it. She knew someone who got in trouble in Griffon's class." Said Francine. "She said you have to sit in the very front of the class and you can't make any noise. Not even a sneeze! If you do, you get detention for a week. And Mrs. Griffon stares at you the whole time! I'm glad it's Buster and not me." Francine thought for a moment. "Oh yeah! Arthur, Buster said something about a secret plan to get Fern to be his girlfriend. What was he talking about?"  
  
"Um. I might have told him that Fern was playing hard to get... And that he needs to trick her into confessing about the notes..." Arthur said meekly.  
  
"Arthur Read, you are the king of doofuses. Does Fern look like she would ever even think of playing hard to get?"  
  
Arthur said, "Well, now that I think about it... I guess she wouldn't. Should I tell Buster to forget about his plan?"  
  
"No way! I wanna see what happens!" said Muffy.  
  
"Me too!" said Francine.  
  
Brain shook his head. "Girls."  
  
*****  
  
Eventually, Muffy and Francine convinced Arthur to come along. It also seemed pretty interesting to Arthur when Buster asked if he could 'borrow' D.W. for the plan. They all went along with Buster to the library, where Fern already was. Buster, Arthur, Francine, and Muffy hid behind a near-by rack of books as D.W.(in the same disguise as in 'It's a No Brainer') approached Fern.  
  
Arthur whispered to Buster, "Do you think this will work?"  
  
Buster whispered back, "It had better! I'm buying D.W. one shake a week for the next three months for this!" As they watched, D.W. and Fern seemed to be discussing something, then Fern closed her book and walked away. "Where did she go?" asked Buster  
  
"How about right behind you?" replied Fern. The four children jumped. "What is going on?"  
  
"Uh, see ya Buster!" said Francine, rushing to the library exit.  
  
"Yeah, bye!" said Muffy, close behind Francine. Arthur began to inch away too, pulling D.W. with him.  
  
"Um... I have to go... Walk the dog. Bye!"  
  
'Some friends...' Buster thought.  
  
"Buster..." Fern began, "If you wanted to tell me you had a crush on me, you should have done it yourself!"  
  
"I guess I-Wait! You're the one with a crush on me!"  
  
Fern blinked. "What? Since when?"  
  
"Since you left a love poem in my locker!"  
  
"What? I never did that!"  
  
Buster reached into his pocket and pulled out the note. "Then what's this?" Fern took the note from him and read it silently. She looked up at Buster and shook her head.  
  
"This is a sweet poem, but it's not my handwriting. Someone else is in love with you!"  
  
"But. Who else likes poetry like you do?"  
  
Fern grinned. "A mystery! I'll help you find out who wrote the note if you want."  
  
"Sure!" said Buster. "I think I'll need all the help I can get!"  
  
*****  
  
Meanwhile, Brain was passing by the Sugarbowl when he looked in to see a very depressed looking George sitting inside. He entered the shop and sat across from the sad boy. "Hello, George."  
  
George slowly looked up from his orange soda. "Hey..."  
  
"Is something wrong?"  
  
George sighed and looked away. "I... Don't really want to talk about it."  
  
"Are you sure?" Brain asked. "You seem very despondent."  
  
George just stared off into space, and sighed again. After a length, Brain asked, "How are those reading classes going? You get to skip the second half of Mrs. Griffon's class, right?"   
  
"They're all right... And I only go every Monday and Friday." George shifted in his seat. "Um... How are you?"   
  
"I'm fine. Did you hear about the love notes in Buster's locker? I think Fern has a crush on Buster. He and the others are at the library, and are going to see if Fern does like him."   
  
George sighed again. "Fern didn't put the poem in his locker, I did. Not like he'd notice me anyway..." George suddenly sat straight up and went pale. "Oh... Oh no..." He covered his mouth and looked at Brain.   
  
Brain leaned in close. "You're in love with Buster?"   
  
George kept his hands over his mouth and was shaking slightly. "I... I... Oh no..." He grabbed Brain's sleeve. "Please! You can't tell anyone! I shouldn't have said that... Promise you won't tell anyone, please? Please?"   
  
Brain put his hand on George's arm. "It's all right, George. I promise I won't say anything. Are you really in love with Buster?"   
  
George nodded shakily. "I... I've had a crush on him since fourth grade. You swear you won't tell anyone?" He looked as if he was on the verge of tears.   
  
Brain smiled reassuringly. "Of course. You know, George, you aren't the only gay student in the school. I have a friend in my class who is, also. It's really not as uncommon as one would think. You have nothing to worry about. When you feel that you're ready to tell someone else, just remember that your friends will always like you for who you are." George looked uncertain. "I mean it, George. You shouldn't worry like this."   
  
"I... I guess not." George slowly stood up. "Um... I'm... Gonna go home now. Uh... See you tomorrow."   
  
"Bye. Remember what I said!"   
  
"Uh... Yeah... Ok..." As George left the building, he thought to himself, 'But does he really know if I'm normal?'  
  
***  
  
Thanks to everyone for the reviews! Taitofan, Flowergal1000, and Wonkavision, thanks for reading! Hope you enjoy this chapter too. Donkey Kong Song. Yes. I mean no. Probably.  
  
Ha! Update! I re-formatted this chapter and chapter one. Why didn't anyone tell me they looked so crappy? Bleh. 


	3. Wednesday: The Plan

This chapter is just kinda… Blah. It's supposed to be an introspective on George. Ah well. Once again, review responses are at the end. And I apologize for the lateness of this chapter... Many unpleasant things were happening in my life… Including myself being diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia! Yeesh. Go read now.  
  
Note: "blah" = Character speaking  
  
'blah' = Character thinking  
  
~~~~~~ = Character daydream/fantasy  
  
One Week by luciferchan a.k.a. George Nordgren's Stalker   
  
*****  
  
*Wednesday*  
  
George sat in his seat in Mrs. Griffon's class and stared out of the window. Sometimes when Mrs. Griffon would drone on and on about some depressing topic, George would daydream or just organize his thoughts. Today, he had a lot to think about. He really didn't have a clue why he was so infatuated with Buster... He just couldn't stop thinking about him. They were almost complete opposites too... Buster being loud and adventurous and himself being quiet and subdued.   
  
George glanced up at the clock. '5 more minutes...' He started doodling on a piece of paper as Mrs. Griffon talked about smallpox. He sighed as he drew hearts around a stick figure bunny. 'Maybe I'm going crazy... Fat chance he'd ever notice me, let alone like me.' He drew a frowning reindeer stick figure next to the bunny. 'Why'd I fall in love with him? He was the only one who really kept talking to me after that whole thing with Wally...' He was broken out of this reverie by a sharp coughing sound. He looked up and realized Mrs. Griffon had been standing over him, glaring.  
  
"George," she said with a sneer, "you have not been paying attention. I will have no more of this… Independent thought in my classroom. Do you understand?"  
  
"Yes, Mrs. Griffon." He said, quietly. Mrs. Griffon snatched up the paper he had and threw it in the trash next to her desk.  
  
George slumped in his chair as the teacher resumed her lecture. 'Wow. My dreams are literally in the trash... I wonder what Brain thinks of me. What if he tells someone...?' He bit his lip. 'I guess he wouldn't... He's not mean like that. But I guess it wouldn't matter much if he did tell anyone. Jeez! I wonder if I'm always this depressing?" Just then, the bell rang, signaling the end of the school day. The students grabbed their bags.  
  
"A-hem..." Mrs. Griffon coughed. Everyone froze. "I believe I decide when class is over, not the bell. Take your seats." The class sat back down, most gazing longingly at the door. The seconds ticked by agonizingly slow. Finally, when none could bear it any longer, Mrs. Griffon hissed, "Get out." What followed was a mad dash to the door, as all of the children tried to squeeze through at the same time. As George struggled out of the mass of escapees, he lost his balance. Before he hit the floor, he felt himself being caught. He looked up to see Buster smiling at him.  
  
"You okay, George?"  
  
George just stared, agape.  
  
"George?"  
  
"Th-Thanks..." George stammered, blushing furiously.  
  
"No problem. See ya!" Buster called as he ran off to rejoin Arthur.  
  
George stood there in the hallway, oblivious to anything around him. He gazed at Buster's retreating form and sighed. "I should have said something..."  
  
~~~~~~  
  
George fell into Buster's arms.  
  
"George! Are you alright?" Buster cried.  
  
"I'm fine... Now that you're here..." He gazed into Buster's eyes.  
  
"Oh, George... There's something I need to tell you... I..."  
  
George shushed Buster. "I know." The two leaned closer, and closer, their lips almost touching...  
  
~~~~~~  
  
Suddenly, George was shaken from his reverie as he was roughly shoved aside by someone walking past. He sighed again. 'That was pretty lame...' He walked to the school's exit. He saw The Brain walking home. 'That's it!' He thought, and ran after him. "Hey! Brain! Wait!"  
  
Brain turned. "Oh hi, George. How are you doing?"  
  
"Brain, I need your help."  
  
Alan looked puzzled. "You need help with math?"  
  
"No... I need you to help me with Buster."  
  
Brain frowned. "I really would rather not get involved with that situation…"  
  
"Pleease, Brain? You're the only one I can trust!"  
  
"I don't see why you'd need my help, why don't you just tell him how you feel?"  
  
George looked at the ground. "I... I'm scared to. What if he doesn't like me? I don't know what I'd do…"  
  
"Fear of rejection?"  
  
"...Yeah."  
  
Brain sighed. "Look, I'll help you… But if he doesn't like you, then that's it. No crazy schemes to get you two together, all right?"  
  
"...You don't think he likes me?"  
  
"I don't know! I never asked him about his sexual preference before… Mainly because it's none of my business."  
  
"Oh." George blushed. "Sorry."  
  
"It's all right. I can tell you're a little stressed from all of this." Brain said sympathetically.  
  
"I am. Thanks for your help, Brain. See you tomorrow!" George ran off.  
  
Brain sighed heavily as he resumed walking home. "Why do I have the feeling that I'll regret this?"  
  
***   
  
Yeah! Not as good as the other chapters huh? It's 1:22 am and I'm hungry. So shush.  
  
ShOrTiE101: Thanks! Hope you liked this chapter too.  
  
nitpicky: Thank you for the complement, and for pointing out that error. It's all fixed now. Hooray!  
  
Libra: Hi! Thanks for reviewing. Heh...   
  
Donkey Kong Song: Meh… Hope the chapter didn't dissapoint you then. Still excited?  
  
Bella12: Wow. Thanks for reviewing, I'm a large fan of your works. Shudder? Hehehe... All characters are under my control! They will live and love as I deem fit!! MUAHAHAHAHA!! 


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